Tax avoidance by multinationals: illegal state aid?

Louche Lad

Would this ruling by the EU have implications for the likes of Google and Apple? http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/22/business/international/starbucks-fiat-eu-tax-netherlands-luxembourg.html

Godge

Louche Lad wrote: »

Would this ruling by the EU have implications for the likes of Google and Apple? http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/22/business/international/starbucks-fiat-eu-tax-netherlands-luxembourg.html

Did you not read the article?


"Ms. Vestager, asked at a news conference on Wednesday about the investigations involving Amazon and Apple, said that those were “very different cases,” and she declined to give a date for decisions."


"Very different cases" is pretty clear.

mahoganygas

An article in FT suggests that this case was fought hard to set a precedent.
Both amounts recovered are relatively small. This case was not about going after Starbucks and Fiat. They want to go after the big boys next.

Interesting that both governments are challenging what is effectively free money for them.

There is also suggestions that a similar case with Apple could result in a tax rebate worth billions.

Calibos

Would I be right in thinking it could be win win for us. That it could turn out to be kind of an unintentional bait and switch. We 'baited' the multinationals with the corporation tax regime, are happy with the investment and jobs and even allow an effective CT significantly below the headline rate. We fight against Europe tooth and nail to keep it for years. As a result the MNC's feel safe in tax laundering insane amounts of money through us. So much, that if the 'Switch' is enforced by Europe, there is so much tax due to Ireland that even if the MNC's say "Feck Ye anyway, we're pulling out and all those jobs go poof", The Tax windfall is way more than enough to compensate.

toptom

We get jobs out of it sure.

Good loser

Calibos wrote: »

Would I be right in thinking it could be win win for us. That it could turn out to be kind of an unintentional bait and switch. We 'baited' the multinationals with the corporation tax regime, are happy with the investment and jobs and even allow an effective CT significantly below the headline rate. We fight against Europe tooth and nail to keep it for years. As a result the MNC's feel safe in tax laundering insane amounts of money through us. So much, that if the 'Switch' is enforced by Europe, there is so much tax due to Ireland that even if the MNC's say "Feck Ye anyway, we're pulling out and all those jobs go poof", The Tax windfall is way more than enough to compensate.

First we would have to be very sure we would get the money.

And I doubt very much if a one-off payment would come remotely near compensating for the loss of the annual income.

Nichard Dixon

Calibos wrote: »

Would I be right in thinking it could be win win for us. That it could turn out to be kind of an unintentional bait and switch. We 'baited' the multinationals with the corporation tax regime, are happy with the investment and jobs and even allow an effective CT significantly below the headline rate. We fight against Europe tooth and nail to keep it for years. As a result the MNC's feel safe in tax laundering insane amounts of money through us. So much, that if the 'Switch' is enforced by Europe, there is so much tax due to Ireland that even if the MNC's say "Feck Ye anyway, we're pulling out and all those jobs go poof", The Tax windfall is way more than enough to compensate.

We largely have the MNCs, possibly enticed here by an introductory offer. Now no other EU country, nor probably any EEA country, can offer "unfair" tax incentives to take them away. Unless they all move to Belarus or Serbia, they might as well just stay here and pay the tax. New tax rules will emphasise real "presence", this might even mean more jobs in Ireland.

Quin_Dub

Nichard Dixon wrote: »

We largely have the MNCs, possibly enticed here by an introductory offer. Now no other EU country, nor probably any EEA country, can offer "unfair" tax incentives to take them away. Unless they all move to Belarus or Serbia, they might as well just stay here and pay the tax. New tax rules will emphasise real "presence", this might even mean more jobs in Ireland.

Possibly...

The jobs that are here are not here because of the "double-irish" etc.. The boiler-plates are here because of that..

If you take a closer look all the MNC's have multiple companies registered here.. The ones that have the huge profits moving through them are not the ones that employ all the staff..

Major tax changes will likely not have a massive impact on the employment levels , but it will have an impact on the levels of profits passing through the Irish boiler-plate entities thereby reducing the Corporate tax take at the top level